OLLU Men's and Women's Soccer Stun Nationally Ranked UTB

By Patty Constantin, Our Lady of the Lake (Texas) Assistant Director for Marketing and Communications

OLLU men's soccer defeats No. 6-ranked Brownsville 2-0

SAN ANTONIO, Texas – The Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU) men's soccer team controlled the No. 5 team in the NAIA -- University of Texas at Brownsville for most of the competition and delivered the Ocelots their first loss in the Red River Athletic Conference.

The 2-0 win moves the Saints to 3-1 in the conference and 10-2 overall, and the Ocelots drop to 3-1 and 10-2 overall. The two teams, along with the University of St. Thomas (2-0/6-2-2), are tied for second place and one game behind league leader Huston-Tillotson University (4-0/5-4-2).

Graduate Assistant Coach Gary Hamilton said, "The team got the job done. It's always good getting a win against Brownsville because they are our biggest rival and they always have quality teams."

The Saints have only beaten Brownsville two previous times out off eight tries. The last win came in 2012, when the Saints won 3-2 in the final game of the regular season. That win gave the Saints the regular season title, and they went on to win the conference tournament, as well.Brownsville took eight shots in the first half, while OLLU took six, but none found the net. Brownsville did have to cut their roster to 10 after Leonardo Medeiros was assessed a red card for a dangerous tackle at the seventh minute.

The Saints took 20 minutes to score the game's first goal. Junior Robert Alexe took a pass from junior Elias Cortes to put the Saints on the board. Sixteen minutes later, senior Yared Temesgen found the net on an assist from Marcelo Chapa to give the Saints the 2-0 win.

The Saints outshot the Ocelots 17-13, and OLLU's Alexe led the way with five shots, three on goal. Brownsville's Victor Parreiras, the conference's leader in points, assists and game-winning goals, was limited to four shots this afternoon.

Saints captain Luis Flores, who is from Brownsville, commented, "Overall, the win was not our best game, but it was good enough."

Angel de la Garza, also a Brownsville native, said, "I played with some of the players from their team in high school, so it was good seeing them. I am happy with the win."

The Saints will play their next game on Oct. 19, when they host Wiley College at 3 p.m.

OLLU women's soccer stuns No. 15-ranked Brownsville with 1-0 win

SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- The Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU) women's soccer team stunned the No. 15 team in the NAIA University of Texas at Brownsville by a score of 1-0 this afternoon.

The win keeps the Saints undefeated in the Red River Athletic Conference with a 4-0 record and 12-1-1 overall. Brownsville, which previously was tied with the Saints for first place, has dropped to third place with a 3-1 conference and 8-3 overall record. Huston-Tillotson University (3-0-1/4-4-2) is ½ a game behind the No. 1 Saints.

Graduate Assistant Coach Gary Hamilton said, "It's always good getting a win against Brownsville because they are our biggest rival, and they always have quality teams. We're happy with how we played, but there are a lot of improvements we have to make in order to keep being successful."The Saints got on the board quickly after sophomore Stephania Vazquez found the net on a pass from sophomore Alissa Villarreal. The goal came following a foul by Brownsville's Katherine Vega.

The Ocelots would go on to shoot nine shots, four on goal, while the Saints shot four, three on goal to end the first half.

The Saints outshot Brownsville 14-8 in the second half.

OLLU keeper freshman Gabriela Lopez recorded four saves, while Brownsville's starting keeper Maria Eriksen recorded one and allowed the one goal. Second-half keeper Amanda Fulton finished with four saves for the Ocelots.

Vazquez led her team in shooting with five, three on goal. Stephanie Diaz shot three, two on goal. Brownsville's Isadora Freitas shot five, while her teammate Nelleke Smits added three.

Vazquez commented, "I feel very proud of my team. We didn't settle, and we kept playing even after we scored."

The win marks only the third time in 11 games that the Saints have defeated Brownsville. The biggest win against Brownsville came in 2009, when the Saints won 4-2.

In this week's NAIA Women's Soccer Coaches' Top 25 Poll, the Ocelots were ranked Nol. 15, and the Saints received 10 votes.

The Saints will play their next game at Trinity University on Oct. 14. On Oct. 19, the team will play its last home game against Wiley College.

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